House Passes Bill to Halve Student-Loan Interest Rate

By KELLY FIELD

Washington

By a vote of 356-71, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill Wednesday evening that would halve the interest rate on federally subsidized student loans over a five-year period.

The bill (HR 5), the fifth of six that Democratic leaders have promised to take up during the first 100 hours of the new Congress, now heads to...